Azernews.Az

By Amina Nazarli

The United States together with other OSCE Minsk Group co-chairing countries must intensify efforts to resolve the Armenia-Azerbaijan Nagorno-Karabakh conflict.

This statement was made by Azerbaijani Foreign Minister Elmar Mammadyarov as he met the U.S. Deputy Assistant Secretary in the Bureau of European and Eurasian Affairs, Bridget Brink, in Baku on November 22.

The foreign minister informed Brink about the negotiation process to resolve the conflict and stressed inadmissibility of the status quo.

The conflict between the two South Caucasus countries began in 1988 when Armenia made territorial claims against Azerbaijan. As a result of the ensuing war, in 1992 Armenian armed forces occupied 20 percent of Azerbaijan, including the Nagorno-Karabakh region and seven surrounding districts.

The 1994 ceasefire agreement was followed by peace negotiations, however, Armenia has not yet implemented four UN Security Council resolutions on withdrawal of its armed forces from the Nagorno-Karabakh and the surrounding districts.

Touching upon the cooperation between Azerbaijan and the U.S, both sides expressed satisfaction with the cooperation in economy, energy, peacekeeping operations and fighting international terrorism.

Brink said the U.S. attaches great importance to cooperation with Azerbaijan and appreciates the country’s contribution in the peacekeeping mission in Afghanistan and the fight against terrorism.

Brink, talking to reporters, stressed that Azerbaijan and the U.S. continue to work together on counterterrorism and transnational threats.

“I am here today to reaffirm our longstanding commitment to independent, stable, prosperous, democratic Azerbaijan,” she said.

“We discussed how we can build on the progress we have made in bilateral relations. On security issues we continue to work together on counterterrorism and transnational threats. With regard to economic and energy issues, we affirm our commitment to Azerbaijan’s economic growth.”

The U.S. official further said that her country reiterates appreciation for the important role that Azerbaijan plays in the EU’s energy security.

Touching upon the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict, the U.S. official said that there is no military solution to the conflict, adding that the U.S. remains committed to working with the sides of the conflict to mediate a comprehensive settlement.

“We appreciate Ambassador James Warlick’s service as OSCE Minsk Group US co-chair,” she added commenting on Warlick’s resignation.

Brink said she has no information on who will become the next OSCE MG U.S. co-chair. “I don’t have a name to announce at this moment,” she said.

As part of the visit, Brink was earlier received by President Ilham Aliyev, who expressed hope that successful cooperation between the two countries would be continued with the new administration of the U.S..

They had a broad exchange of views over the current state and prospects of relations between Azerbaijan and the U.S. The solution to the long-lasting Armenia-Azerbaijan Nagorno-Karabakh conflict was also discussed during the meeting.

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Amina Nazarli is AzerNews’ staff journalist, follow her on Twitter: @amina_nazarli

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